Black Thought and Yasiin Bey are set to reunite for a new collaboration that the former has hailed as a “timeless classic.”
The legendary Roots lyricist shared more details about his forthcoming solo project Streams of Thought Vol. 4 in an interview with The FADER.
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The album — produced entirely by 14KT — is shaping up to be a star-studded affair with features from Rick Ross, J.I.D, Redman, Pharoahe Monch, Fabolous, Big K.R.I.T., Curren$y and Tobe Nwigwe.
But Thought is particularly excited about his song with the artist formerly known as Mos Def, which he believes will “represent a seismic shift in the game.”
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“[14]KT sent me this beat to a song called ‘Blaaaaack!,’ and that became the first song I recorded, me and Yasiin Bey, on Streams of Thought Vol. 4,” he told The FADER. “It’s a timeless classic. It’s been in my vault for a couple years already.
“It could come out at any point in time, and it’ll still represent a seismic shift in the game just because of how powerful it is and what it speaks to. I was like, ‘Yo, if this is what the process is gonna be like, let’s keep it rolling, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom.'”
Black Thought and Yasiin Bey have proven to be a dynamic duo in the past, sharping their lyrical swords on The Roots songs “Double Trouble,” “Rising Down” and “Hurricane,” as well as Black Star’s “Respiration (Pete Rock Remix)” and Freddie Gibbs and Madlib’s “Education.”
Most recently, the veteran MCs linked up on “Frequency,” from Black Star’s long-awaited sophomore LP No Fear of Time that dropped last May, along with the album leftover “Mineral Mountain.”
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During his chat with The FADER, Black Thought also explained how he linked up with 14KT, the Michigan-born producer who has previously worked with the likes of Jay Electronica, Danny Brown, Bun B, Elzhi and Masta Ace.
“He’s from Detroit, now L.A. based, a brilliant producer,” the Philly native said. “I never knew dude. I wasn’t familiar with his work. But I’ve got lots of connections to Detroit — family, longtime friends. DJ Jazzy Jeff does these retreats at his home annually where he flies in writers, producers from all over the world.”
He continued: “James [Poyser] is a member of The Roots, and an original member of Jazzy Jeff’s camp. He’s like, ‘Yo, I met this dude. He’s a brilliant producer. He said he’s a huge fan. He has this one beat he wants to play for you.’ We chopped it up.”
While a release date has yet to be announced, Streams of Thought Vol. 4 will serve as the follow-up to 2020’s Streams of Thought Vol. 3: Cane & Able, which was produced by Sean C and boasted appearances from Pusha T, Killer Mike and ScHoolboy Q, among others.
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The previous two installments in the series were also helmed by a single producer: 9th Wonder and Salaam Remi, respectively.
In the meantime, Black Thought fans can look forward to his new collaborative project with El Michels Affai, Glorious Game, which drops Friday (April 14).
